This disclosure relates, in general, to a computer, and, more particularly, to a computer having an improved hard drive assembly, and a method for assembling same.
A computer includes at least one hard drive assembly which contains permanent memory and which is disposed in the chassis of the computer. A typical hard drive assembly consists of a carrier that receives a drive unit and slides into a guide-rail assembly in an appropriate bay in the computer chassis. The drive unit includes a rigid housing containing the permanent memory and a motor for driving the unit. Also, a shield is often provided for shielding the permanent memory from electro-magnetic energy or interference (EMI) from the motor of the hard drive.
There are design problems associated with these types of hard drive assemblies. For example, the carrier must be sized to receive the housing in a relatively tight fit to prevent vibrations, etc. However, the housings of the drive units often have width dimensions tolerances that vary considerably between manufacturers and between families of drive units. In some cases, the difference between the widths at the base of the drives can be as much as 0.05 inches. Therefore, it is difficult to insure that the drive unit can be properly mounted in the carrier.
Also, industry standards provide for drive units having both a standard 1 inch and a 1.6 height, which compounds the above problem and leads to another problem in connection with the EMI shield. More, particularly, since the height of the shield is critical from both a shielding and a packaging standpoint, it is difficult, if not impossible, to maintain proper shielding and properly house the drive unit, yet accommodate both a 1 inch drive unit and a 1.6 inch unit.
Therefore, what is needed is a hard drive assembly including an EMI shield which can accommodate relatively large variations between width dimension tolerances in the drive units and variations in the standard heights of the units.